WYOMING, MI -- Nearly three hours after responding to the scene of a trench that collapsed, trapping two men in side, emergency crews recovered the body of a man killed in the incident Monday afternoon, Oct. 9.
The body, recovered around 4:45 p.m., belonged to a 30-year-old who was working in the trench with his father to replace the home's backed up sewer line, according to firefighters.
Officials have not released the name of either worker.
One man dead after sewer line tunnel collapses, Wyoming fire chief says
One man is dead after sewer tunnel collapsed in the Grand Rapids suburb of Wyoming Monday, Oct. 9.
They had dug down around eight to 10 feet, without reinforcing the side walls of the trench when it collapsed, Grand Rapids Fire Department Battalion Fire Chief Collin Kelly said.
The father, 53, was buried up to his waist while his son was completely buried. Kelly estimates the son's head was probably about six feet below the surface.
A neighbor had heard the father's calls for help and called 911. Emergency crews responded to the call at about 2 p.m. Monday.
Kelly said a substantial amount of earth was on top of the father and son. A vacuum truck from the city of Wyoming sucked up about 15 yards of sand to make it safe enough for dispatchers to go down and unbury the men, he said.
Once crews began to uncover the son, the rescue effort became a body recovery, Kelly said.
If the father had been buried even a foot deeper, Kelly said, it might have killed him due to compartment syndrome, a build up of pressure that can affect blood circulation. The fact he was only buried up to his waist might have saved his life, he said.
=====================
WYOMING, Mich. (WOOD) — One person died after becoming trapped in a collapsed trench in Wyoming Monday afternoon, while another who was injured was pulled to safety.
It happened in a residential area on Jordan Street SW off of Division Avenue near 36th Street where a project to either repair or replace a home’s sewer line was underway.
First responders at the scene of a trench rescue in Wyoming on Oct. 9, 2017. Margaret Skeel, who lives next to the home where the accident happened, told 24 Hour News 8 that it was around 2 p.m. when she heard a call for help from an unidentified man.
“I said, ‘Do you want an ambulance? Do you want police?’ (and he responded) ‘Yes! I need help now!'” Skeel said.
She could see work on the 20-foot-long trench from the second floor of her home.
“They’ve got dirt buried on both sides, banked up high, and it apparently come down on this gentleman and buried him,” Skeel said.
One man was killed and another injured when a trench collapsed in Wyoming. (Oct. 9, 2017) The second man was buried to up to his waist with dirt. Skeel watched as he frantically tried to get to his co-worker, who was buried in the pile nearby.
“He pointed, it was pretty much right next to him… ’cause he was trying to dig with his hands,” she said.
Rescue crews from Wyoming first arrived at the scene, followed by Grand Rapids firefighters, who specialize in trench rescues.
Such collapses are very dangerous. If crews rush in too quick or move the dirt the wrong way, it could increase the risk of another collapse that puts both the victims and rescuers in danger.
First responders at the scene of a trench rescue in Wyoming on Oct. 9, 2017. So firefighters worked very methodically to get to the victim, shoring the trench with timber and plywood to protect against further collapse.
At one point, a sewer vacuum truck from the Wyoming Department of Public Works was called in to try to suck out some of the dirt around the victim.
But it was too late. Just a few hours after the initial call, the rescue had turned to a recovery effort. Firefighters eventually recovered the worker’s body.
Wyoming Fire Department Chief Chuck Lark said it’s unclear why the collapse occurred.
“OSHA’s here. They’re investigating. And we have our investigators here also,” he said.
As of Monday evening, the identities of the victims and the company the work for haven’t been released.